Student Cross

Student Cross is the annual, Ecumenical, cross-carrying, walking pilgrimage to Walsingham that takes place over Holy Week and Easter. It is the longest continuous walking pilgrimage in Britain and is walked by students, graduates and their families. The pilgrimage was founded in 1948 by a University of London student, Wilfred Mauncote-Carter, who led a group of students including many ex-servicemen, on a walk from London to Walsingham, taking it in turns to carry the Cross. The pilgrimage has grown over the years and currently consists of 11 different 'legs' that start from different areas of the country and at different stages of the week leading up to the celebration of the Easter Triduum. The Pilgrimage has been officially Ecumenical since 1972 although it still retains a Catholic flavour.

Six of the legs walk for seven days over a distance of approximately 120 miles. One leg walks for three days over a distance of around sixty miles. Two are for families and are based in Letton Hall, near Shipdham and Wells-next-the-Sea. Easter Cross walks for Good Friday only and is generally for older student-crossers who have previously walked full legs. In 2012, another leg - Wensum Leg - was set up for secondary school-aged children and their parents, to cover the gap between family legs and the 'main' legs. All of the legs meet on the afternoon of Good Friday and celebrate the Easter liturgy together in Walsingham over the Easter weekend.